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PAUL CARLSON'S WRITING

Included here are the first chapters of my three science fiction novels. They are presented for your enjoyment, and in hopes of gaining the interest of the commercial publishing industry. Agents and editors are welcome. Book doctors and vanity presses, please look elsewhere.


I've been a science fiction fan my entire life. One of the first things I can remember reading were my mother's SF paperbacks, and my fascination has only grown. I began writing decades ago, with a couple of short stories, never published. Then I began to write long letters and opinion columns, in addition to nonfiction articles.

Several years ago, along with six members of my writer's group (plus others), I contributed to a delightful children's Fantasy anthology. The inimitable crew at Yard Dog Press titled the book Stories That Won't Make Your Parents Hurl, and we're still receiving royalty checks. My short story "Happy New Year" appears within.

http://www.yarddogpress.com/stories.htm

After devouring hundreds of SF titles I caught the "Hey, I Could Do This" bug, and started writing Descending Star. Several authors, most notably Poul Anderson, were very encouraging. This manuscript began as an 8000 word short story, and when I realized it could be a novel, it grew to 80,000 words before I'd stopped for a breather.

Descending Star


After a long and complicated course, which you probably don't want to hear about, I ended up with a rewritten first novel and a completed second one, titled Distant Origins.

Distant Origins

I'm about three-quarters done with a third manuscript, titled Roshanna.

Roshanna

All three novels are 'hard' SF, and set in the same near-future milieu. I have plans for several more.

My flash fiction story "Props" appears in this Yard Dog Press anthology, Flush Fiction, Volume One. More than 40 others tales share this volume. The profits are going toward an emergency medical fund for their authors and artists.

http://www.yarddogpress.com/flush.htm


The May 2006 issue of Surprising Stories featured my flash fiction SF story "Waveform."

(As the magazine no longer has that issue posted, I have reproduced it here, with added links.)

Waveform

I've been published in Bewildering Stories, with a light-hearted flash piece titled "Only Human."

http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue220/only_human.html

I've now appeared in two issues of Sentinel Science Fiction. Lou Antonelli honored me with a spot in Issue #1, with a serious time travel story titled "Cavers." I'm also in Issue #5, with a humorous flash fic piece titled "Spin." (Please take time to enjoy every issue. He has a great eye for stories.)

Note! This link is to Lou's new web domain and site. So far, the original five issues are not available. (Another note! Problems with the new web host have erupted, and for the moment, nothing is on line. Wah! )

http://www.cedarhillsentinel.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=143&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=&wpage=&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=1045&hn=cedarhillsentinel&he=.com

This unusual anthology, titled Fall and Rise, is from Whortleberry Press. My story "Journey" shares this collection with offerings from Robert Sawyer, Phillis Gotlieb, Jay Lake, and several other SF professionals.

http://whortleberrypress.com/index.shtml

Houston, We've Got Bubbas is set in Yard Dog's quirky postapocalyptic Bubba/Yumbie universe. My story is "Lady and the Bubbas."

http://www.yarddogpress.com/newpage.htm

Coming soon!
I'm proud to be in an anthology titled SF Waxes Philosophical, edited by Ahmed Khan, who also created Fall and Rise. My story reprint "Waveform" shares this collection with offerings from Michael Bishop, Steven Utley, Ted Kosmatka, and several other SF professionals.

Here's a rough draft of the cover art:



As a professional truck driver, I've always been interested in the meeting of that realm with science fiction. Few truckers are active as writers, much less as webmasters; and few speculative fiction tales involve trucking.
On a whim I began to list the handful of stories I knew about. Friends on line suggested others, so the list has grown to about thirty titles. Out of tens of thousands of spec-fic titles, that's not many! (If you include all 'blue collar' occupations, they're still rare.)

Here's my TDSF list.

Interested? Please email me at, blimbot /at/ aol /dot/ com and be sure to make your subject line distinct

(Sorry, no 'auto click' link, because they attract spam.)

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